The prior art is replete with wheeled devices that couple to a user's feet. These include conventional roller skates, in-line skates, and wheeled devices for cross-country ski training, among others. Exemplary prior art devices include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,425,586; 5,997,015; 5,401,040; 4,659,095; 4,138,127; and 3,442,523; among others.
Most of the devices disclosed in these patents utilize a fixed position wheel arrangement that provides either no or very limited turnability. To execute a turn, a user typically lifts one skate over the other and places the raised skate down at an angle to the first. The position of the raised skate when once again placed on the ground constitutes the new line of direction. To execute a sharper turn, a user may lift his or her skate several times making small incremental turns each time.
One attempt to increase the turnability of a wheeled skate is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,523. The '523 patent discloses a conventional roller skate having two pairs of wheels. Each pair of wheels has a wheel mount assembly including an angled shaft and an axle that is common to the paired wheels. Leaning the skate from side causes the skate “shoe” portion to rotate about the wheel assembly shafts which in turn causes each common axle and the paired wheels attached thereto to rotate substantially in the horizontal plane, thereby causing the skate to experience enhanced turning.
Among other disadvantageous aspects of this arrangement, the wheel spacing is rather wide apart and there is little clearance between the skate base or frame and the top of the wheels. If a user tries to more aggressively turn the skate, the skate base comes in contact with the wheels, impeding wheel rotation, slowing or even stopping the skate, and potentially causing a damaging fall. Thus, the device of the '523 patent is both limited in turnability and potentially dangerous.
Other turnable prior art wheeled skate devices are known. Many of these, however, are disadvantageously long having wheels or a frame structure that extends beyond the shoe region, and some are disadvantageously unstable, due to a single wheel design or other limitations.
A need thus exists for a wheeled skate device that provides enhanced turnability. Needs also exist for such a wheeled skate device that is relatively compact, lightweight and/or has good stability.